B-town’s brightest have turned mentors to aspiring directors for an anthology of short films, titled Shuruaat Ka Twist, which releases in select multiplexes on May 31.
Knowing well that Bollywood can benefit from the fresh vision of new storytellers, filmmakers Rajkumar Hirani, Vikramaditya Motwane, Raj Kumar Gupta and Amit Masurkar have joined forces for a new project. They have turned mentors to aspiring directors for an anthology of short films, titled Shuruaat Ka Twist, which releases in select multiplexes on May 31. Plans are afoot to release it on a digital platform as well.
Heena D’Souza’s Adi Sonal, starring Neena Gupta and Lalit Behl, immediately struck a chord with Motwane, who decided to back it. Known for his understated dramas, Motwane says, “It is a complicated story of how personal choices are always bigger than a person. It was a great experience to mentor Heena on various aspects of the film – script, editing, music, etc. The story of how women in traditional Indian families adapt to the crisis is beautifully captured in the screenplay.”
Hirani, meanwhile, has thrown his weight behind Bhaskar Calling, which has been directed by Sanjiv Kishinchandani. A comedy that traces a day in the life of a salesman trying to convince a Parsi gentleman to get a home loan, it features Kamil Shaikh, Delnaz Irani and Shahriyar Atai.
Masurkar has overseen Avalokita Dutt’s Gutthi about two inseparable friends, which stars Dheer Hira, Tushar Pandey and Veera Saxena. Masurkar says it was Dutt’s ” unique way of looking at life” that made him place his faith in her project.
“I’ve known Avalokita for years and have always found her work impressive. She has a progressive point of view, and a unique way of looking at life. When I was asked to suggest a filmmaker for this omnibus, Avalokita was the first person I thought of. we discussed what she could make her film on and came up with this idea about a friendship, over years, told in a short format.” Gupta has mentored Hanish Kalia’s Khauff, starring Amit Sial, that revolves around a corporate employee who is suffering from death anxiety.
The anthology also consists of Praveen Fernandes’ Tap Tap starring Chunky Pandey and Gaurav Mehra’s Guddu. it is produced by HumaraMovie, a studio-cum-incubator lab started by Vinay Mishra, Preety Ali and Pallavi Rohatgi. The first edition of Shuruaat was launched in 2016 with Imtiaz Ali, Shyam Benegal, Mira Nair, Homi Adajania, Zoya Akhtar, Sriram Raghavan and Nagesh Kukunoor as mentors.
Filmmakers turn mentors B- Town’s brightest back omnibus helmed by new talent Raju Hirani, Amit Masurkar, Vikramaditya Motwane, Raj Kumar Gupta Neena Gupta in Adi Sonal ‘The story of how women in Indian families adapt to the crisis is captured in the screenplay’ Vikramaditya Motwane Kamil Shaikh and Shahriyar Atai in Bhaskar Calling.
